Grounding-clamp for electric wires.



w. H. VIBBER. GROUNDING OLAMPTQB ELECTRIC WIRES.

APPLICATION PILEDAPB. 20, 1007.

Patented Sept. 29, 1908.

v I UNITED STATES P TENT OFFICE.-

WHEELER H. VIBBER, or NEW LONDON, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE GILLETTE-VIBBER 00., OF NEW LONDON, CONNECTICUT, A" CORPORATION.

- .enomme-cnm FOR ELECTRIC wmns.

No. 899,636. a

l Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 29, 1eoe.

Application filed April 20, e907. Serial No. 369,219.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WHEELER H. VIBBER, a citizen of the United States, residing at New London, in the county of New London and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and useful Clamps for Electric Wires; and I do hereby declare the following, when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings and the letters of reference marked thereon, to be a full, clear, and exact description of the a view thereof in transverse section looking i durableand e same,-.and which said .drawings constitute.

part of this specification, and re resent, in-

; Figure 1 a view partly in side e evation and partly in section of one form which aground clamp constructed in accordance with my invention may assume.-

Fi 2 a side view thereof. Fig. 3 a sectiona view thereof. Fig. 4a reverse plan view thereof. Fig. 5 a view in side elevation of one of the modified forms which the clamp may assume. Fig.6

downward.

My invention relates to-an improvement in ground. clamps for electric wires, the object being totprovide a simple, convenient,

ective clamp constructed with particular reference to being applied to pipes,

ut also adapted to be apphed with. equal success to cables.

With these ends in view my invention consists in the construction hereinafter deperforation 5 in the 4 the outer end of the head enough to scribed and pointed out in the claims.

carrying out my invention as herein shown, I' employ a strap preferably made of sheet co per and bent to form a substantially circular ody2 a roximately (zones on in diameter of tlie pi e-to which-this 012$? is to be a plied. orm' two arms 3 and 4 having ahned perforations 5 for the receptionof a s formed at one end opposite end with an ordinary nut 8. The said head 7 being larger in diameter than the arm 4, bears upon the outer faceof the same and co-acts with the said nut 8 in drawin the arms 3 and 4 of the strap together. A ongitudinal chamber 7 formed in the said head 7 opens outwardly at and provides convenient means for the attachment ofthe wires to be grounded, these being inserted into the said chamber and secured therein in any convenient manner. Moreover the ex- Improvement in Grounding he strap is made long a grounded, to the clamp I posure of the entire head upon the outer face of the arm 4 readily adapts it to be held against rotation. The arm 4 is made longer than the arm 3 and bent inward at an acute angle to form a stop-finger 9 which engages with'the inner face of t e arm 3 when'the arms 3 and 4 are brought into parallel positions. On account of its construction and arra ement this stop-finger9 will yield within limlts and may thus be saidto be self-adjusting, whereby the clamp is adapted to grip a pipe or cable smaller than the internal diameter of its body 2. In order to guaran- ;tee a perfect electric contact between the clamp and the pipe, the body 2 of the clamp is struck inward to form a tooth 10. If desired more than one of these teeth might be produced. To facilitate the. bending of the clamp I preferably cut the metal away on opposite sides in the middle of the body 2 as at 11 so as to increase the metal. I

In the modified construction shown by Figs. 5 and 6 of the drawings the binding screw 12 is furnished with an ordinary screw head 13in place of the tubular head 7 for v which I substitute a socket 14 secured by a rivet l5 tothe body-l6 midway the length If desired the of one of thesides thereof. socket may be made double as shown by broken lines in Fig. 6.

It will be understood that such a clamp as described may be easily applied to any pipe and used as means for grounding e ectric wires to be connected with the clamp in either of the two ways provided. Instead of equally good-e ect to a wire cable.

a pl ing thev clamp to a ipe it may be ap- Pliiad ii claim p 1. In a ground clamp for electric wires, the

flexibility of the combination with a metal strap made in one piece and'bent to form a substantially circular body and two arms one of which 1s made longer than the other and bent inward at an acute angle toward the inner face of the other armto form a yielding stop-finger for the clam of a bmding screw passing through t e said arms, whereby they are drawn together for clamping the said body upon the pipe or cable to which 1t 1s apphed; and means for connecting the wires to be 1n the combination with a one-piece meta strap bent to form a substantially circular arms and formed with an outwardly opening body and two perforated arms one of which longitudinal c amber for the reception an is made longer than the other and bent inattachment of he wires to be grounded. Ward at an acute an le toward the inner face In testimony whereof, I'have signed this 5 of the other arm to orm a yielding stop-finspecification in the presence of two subscrib- 15 ger for the clam of a binding screw passin ing witnesses. throu h the perf zirations of the said arms an WHEELER H. VIBBER.

furnis ed at itsthreaded end with a nut and Witnesses:

rovided at its opposite end with a head THOMAS. J. LUsK, 10 hearing upon the outer face of one of the said J OHN G. AUSTIN. 

